The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of Apple tree, botanically known as Malus domestica Borkh. of the Rosaceae family, and hereinafter referred to by the variety denomination ‘ASFARI’.
The new Malus variety is a product of a controlled breeding program conducted by the inventor(s), Inge De Wit, Hendrik Eyssen, Johan Keulemans, Johan Nicolaï, Els Pauwels and Paul Van Laer, in Rillaar, Belgium. The objective of the breeding program was to develop a new Malus variety with crisp and juicy flesh, as well as good storage capacity and shelf life.
The new Malus variety originated from a cross made by the inventor(s) in 1997 in Belgium. The female or seed parent is the Malus domestica variety designated ‘ELSTAR’ (patented, U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,450 and Plant Breeder's Rights Nos.: BE 90002, DE APF 00007, FR 10412, GB 900030 and NL APP0060). The male or pollen parent is the Malus domestica variety designated ‘DELCORF’ (registered, Plant Breeder's Rights No. FR 112364). The new Malus variety was discovered and selected by the inventors within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in 2003 in Rillaar, Belgium.
Asexual reproduction of the new Malus variety by grafting onto rootstocks was first performed in the winter of 2003-2004 in Belgium, and has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for the new variety are firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction. The new variety reproduces true to type.